Framing Privatisation: The Dominance of Neoliberal Discourse and the Death of the Public Good

In this new article published in tripleC: Communication, Capitalism & Critique, Henry Silke (University of Limerick) and Ciara Graham (Dublin 22) examine how the privatisation of one of Ireland’s leading energy suppliers, Bórd Gáis Éireann (BGÉ), that took place in 2014, was handled in mainstream print media in Ireland. They assess that the “media’s coverage of the sale could not be found to be impartial: both the volume and thrust of the articles were inclined to portray privatisation in a favourable, non-critical light.”

The authors find that the majority of media presented the case within Neo-Liberal frames rather than considering the public good.